Ferrari has raised concerns about Mercedes’ new design but it is not related to the ‘no side pods’ that the latter has introduced.
Mercedes has come under the spotlight after it made some radical changes to its new 2022 car ahead of the pre-season testing in Bahrain. Ferrari has raised concerns about it and has called for some actions against it.
Mercedes W13’s new design fashions no side pods and a horizontal mirror mount. While Red Bull boss Christian Horner questioned the legality of the side pods, Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto was more concerned about the mirror mount.
Binotto believes that the wing being used as a mirror mount by Mercedes goes against the aerodynamics regulations that have been heavily revised in 2022.
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Ferrari surprised by Mercedes
During a press conference in Bahrain, Binotto expressed surprise over Mercedes’ new work on the car. He said, “that’s not something we are expecting.”
Talking about his concern about the new additions, he said that some things on the car need to be addressed. He explained that the mirror should not have any aero purpose. They should be there just to look behind.
“I think the way [Mercedes] treated or designed their car, certainly there is a significant aero purpose in the mirrors itself and I think something we need to stop for the future, no doubt because the risk is we will come in the future that all the teams start designing mirrors that look like spaceships.”
“I don’t think that’s what we are looking for as F1,” Binotto added.
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Red Bull questions legality
Red Bull boss Christian Horner was bothered by the ‘no side pods’ thing that Mercedes entered the track in Bahrain. However, Binotto said, regarding the side pods, that the eight-time Constructors’ champions had produced a “great car”.
Earlier there was some confusion over whether or not Horner had made any comments about the Mercedes’ side pods.
Although Horner had been quoted, the Red Bull team insisted there had been “no official comment”, while the team principal later added he had not “paid a great deal of attention to [the Mercedes]. It’s obviously a fairly different concept, but that’s for the designer guys and aerodynamicists to get into”.
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